Bryce Taylor and Michael Matheson-Deng will begin their 4000 km trek on 1 November to continue supporting many of the ACT’s kennel dogs, including Tofu. Photo: Jarryd Rowley.
Two dog-loving cyclists are about to embark on a challenging 4000 km journey from Perth to Canberra on a tandem bike to raise money for Lifeline and Dogs Canberra.
Michael Matheson-Deng and Bryce Taylor will begin their charity ride, Ride for Ruff Days, in Perth on 1 November, and will aim to arrive in Canberra within 40 days.
Both Michael and Bryce are executives at Dogs Canberra, a service that trains kennel dogs while giving Canberra community members a chance to walk and interact with them.
“Dogs Canberra is a dual-purpose organisation. We support animal welfare, but we also do a lot for mental health empowerment in the community, especially through the community dog-walking program,” Michael said.
“There are huge connections between having good mental health and having a pet, but Canberra is a very transient city.
“People are always coming and going, a lot of people are students, and it’s tricky to have that long-term commitment of a pet. We think that bridging the gap between not having a pet and the accessibility of having a pet in the community is really important.
“Through Dogs Canberra, we’re able to give people the opportunity to meet and pet dogs without the responsibility of looking after them full time. By doing this ride, we are looking to raise money for our organisation so we can keep offering that opportunity.”
Yoshi and Tofu are just a couple of the lovable canine companions Dogs Canberra supports. Photo: Jarryd Rowley.
Bryce said the idea for the ride began about 18 months ago. He explained that he and Michael were both looking for something challenging to base their fundraising effort on.
“We’re just the average Joes. We’re not Ironmen, but we wanted to do something that would push ourselves,” Bryce said.
“I ride a bike fairly often, Michael not so much, but we came up with the idea of doing a tandem bike ride from Perth to Canberra. It’s about as long a ride as you can do, 4000 km, and it’s going to take us about 40 days to finish.
“We will start the trip in Perth, then head down to the town of Esperance before cutting across the Nullarbor. From there, we will travel to Adelaide along the coast, all the way through to Melbourne.
“During the final couple of hundred kilometres, which will be from Jindabyne to Canberra, a few other riders will come and join us and make a real community event of it.”
Bryce said tandem bikes bring a little extra challenge that traditional bikes don’t.
“With the tandem specifically, it takes a lot of practice to get used to,” he said.
“Changing gears, going around bends and things like that all require communication. It’s taken Michael and I a little bit to get familiar with but we’re pretty confident now.”
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Both Michael and Bryce said the journey is about encouraging conversations around mental health and reminding Australians that it’s okay to struggle and ask for help.
“Ride for Ruff Days is all about letting people know that it really is ok to struggle,” Michael said.
“Bryce and I aren’t athletes by any means and we will no doubt struggle across this ride, but we will have support, and there’s support for others struggling right now too.
“Services like Lifeline, which can be called on 13 11 14, are there to support people who are struggling. The money we raise will be split 50-50 between them and the work we do at Dogs Canberra.”
To donate to Michael and Bryce’s ride or learn more about Dogs Canberra, the events they host and the work they do, visit the Dogs Canberra website here.
